How to orderly pack up home, s elderly Senior citizen after 30 years?

I find it easier to start by making piles.

One pile to keep.

One pile to donate (Salvation Army, etc.)

One pile to give to relatives or friends (give the kids back their art work).

One pile to throw away.

The final pile is stuff to keep but it needs mending.

Just go one room at a time. It isn't so overwhelming for me this way. Plus I find a great sense of accomplishment by closing the door behind me as I leave a completed room.

I am in my 60's and found it is good to make every step count. If you go from one room to another take something with you. Example, if you go into the kitchen be sure to pick up all dirty dishes and put them in the sink.

When sorting you have to be sort of ruthless. If you don't want to let go of something because it brings back memories take a picture. That is much easier to store then someone's entire science project.

Good luck!

You may find recent values of some of your items, online (type "recent value of _______" into your search engine. You may find some significant reductions in value for some items, as well.

Seriously go through shoes, clothing, accessories and sell or donate what you can live without (trendy, no longer fits, no longer appeals to you).

Same for glasses, dinnerware, utensils, cookware. You know you really don't need more than 2 sets of these items. Tools, fabrics, craft items, books, magazines,etc. also add much weight and need purged.

If your bedroom furniture includes numerous chests of drawers, can you live with only 1, given that you'll have closet space in your new setting.

Be ruthless in purging extra towels, linens, blankets, pillows, pictures, etc., as you'll never have room for all of what you presently own.

Use up what canned goods you can consume, because the cost of shipping this added weight will surprise you.

You can conduct yard sales, sell online, or have someone sell things for you ( be prepared to pay their commission charges).

Wrap dishes and glassware/ceramics, etc. you want to move in wrapping paper and boxes padded with towels, foam peanuts, or bubble wrap. LABEL EVERYTHING. Use a color code to indicate what room you want items moved to in your next home. Pack some boxes with things you'll need in the first 48 hours (dishes/paper plates, utensils, coffee pot, coffee cups, glasses, toiletries, few towels and washcloths, dish soap, small laundry detergent, bath soap, hand soap, hair dryer, etc.)

Organization is key, here. As much as leaving things behind may bother you, you'll be glad to have reduced the stress of packing, lifting, labeling and moving all these extra items.

You'll find very detailed on line help for moving, packing, etc.

My parents did this recently so I know how hard it can be. Take it small area by small area at a time so you're not focusing on the bigger picture but smaller, easily accomplished goals. Take breaks often. I find sorting into keep, sell, donate and taking care of each promptly as you go builds the motivation to keep going.

I would do one room at a time and schedule out which room you'll do on which day. Some rooms may take 2-3 days. I agree with the poster about making piles, I would do this in each room and don't be afraid to donate than you keep, as it is hard to keep everything.

Do you have a friend that could help you? There are ladies in my area who come in and help you with garage sales (for a percent of the profit), cleaning, donating, rearranging and etc. Sometimes it gets overwhelming to a person and just having someone help or give advice makes a difference.

Pick the things that you can't part with and put them in one spot. From there, decide, in each room, what needs to go. You can contact an antique dealer, or an estate sale company.

There’s a service near us called MaxSold. They come and take photos of things and auction it off online for you. They take a percentage of the sale price but you keep the rest and the stuff gets picked up. Hoping to get my mother in law to do this!

It seems like and estate sale or a consignment deal might be a way to go. Have an appraiser come in and let them go to work, they can negotiate a price on all the households left there, get a price on what can be parted with and an offer that can be accepted.

Top packing tips

1. Make sure to use small boxes for heavier items, and bigger boxes for light items. ...
2. Paper and bubble wrap are great for packing, but you can also make use of your clothes, towels, blankets or any other soft items to provide padding around more delicate items.
3. Label each box with what is in it and what room you want it to go to.

You can read more here: https://www.reallymoving.com/removals/guides/how-to-pack-when-you-move-house

I would have an estate person come in and give a free estimate of what to sell and what to keep. If you go this way you can also make some money. The estate companies here, also donate left overs to charity and you get a tax receipt.

Suzette has already said in her question that she cannot afford an appraiser. She is asking for suggestions that do not involve hiring an assessor or appraiser.

Yes, having to pare down the amount of things that you are used to living amongst and to move to a different home and new environment is always an emotional situation.

My advice is to sit down together and go through your present home one room at a time thinking of and listing all of the items (in each room) that you feel you absolutely cannot live without (for whatever reason or feeling). Do not go into any of the rooms, stay seated where you are to do this task.

Hopefully by going through this exercise you will be able to separate what is really important to each of you with what can be given away free to someone else who needs it more or who can make better use of the items.

Hi Suzette. Begin by picking a day when you don't have anything else to do. Put on some soft music, pour a glass of wine and work at your own pace. Start with a room at a time. Go thru your belongings and make 3 piles: keep, donate, and trash. Mark your boxes to say what's in them. Complete a room before moving on to another. Once you start to see results you will become motivated to continue. I know you can do this. Good luck Suzette.